Changing Times

At midnight between last Saturday and Sunday the clocks went forward (well actually, we put them forward, but being otherwise occupied by old uni mates in the college bar at around that time mine didn't get done until sometime on Sunday afternoon, but anyway!) Having had four years pass since the last time I experienced it, I have realised just how weird a phenomenon it is...

• The mornings, which after a struggle to escape from winter had eventually been getting lighter, are dark again, which is weird.
• The evenings, which had been getting lighter (only a couple of weeks ago it suddenly dawned on me that I was leaving work in the light) are now EVEN lighter, so that when I come out of work it feels like the middle of the afternoon. I can now even get home well before it gets dark. Odd.
• The time-difference with Japan is now 8 hours instead of 9 - which to be honest is far easier to calculate (in that basically people finish work when I start and get up when I go to bed, ish). Actually I had thought that 8 hours was the actual time difference but of course, standard GMT is 9 hours different, but I suppose my misconception is due to having left for Japan in the summer.

Anyway, to make things even more confusing my daily routine has changed - since the poo incident I have changed pools and because the opening hours at the new pool are better, I have been going in the mornings before work (only involves getting up slightly before six, ugh!) So I have gone back to waiting at dark bus stops and riding dark trains, but it does mean I can come straight home from work - and I can't get over that it is still light when I get home!! All in all I feel like I have more life outside of work because I get up and do something rather than coming straight in, and because I have much more evening. Tess and I survived a term of German and translation class has a month off for Easter so I am so time-rich right now!

Messing with time is weird... I know it's only twice a year but still...

How does Google know my name?!

Or is it just that blogger knows?

I googled myself for the first time today. Apparently I am a professor (rah rah) and few other things... and profusemoose came up as number 10 hit! Is it weird that I am excited by that?!

So now I know that google knows what blogger knows... weird.

Yakiniku - London style

Went to a Korean place last night for the first time since coming back to the UK! It was a work thing, actually we've been quite lucky with work-things recently, I reckon since I started here I've probably been treated to dinner about once a month of average!!

It was so natsukashii to have yakiniku again! I didn't think the quality of the beef was as good but the chijimi was SOOOO yum and we had some rather nice tongue :P. They had the hot-plates in the middle of the table (just like Isshintei! lol!) but the staff insisted on cooking it all for us and would just plonk it on our plates when we weren't looking, which was a bit odd (glad they didn't try and actually feed us...) The verdict from the other Korean first-timers was pretty positive - especially the wrapping meat the meat in lettuce leaves part, even if they were a little taken aback by the ring-of-tongue that appeared after the starters. Chijimi is, like, one of the greatest foods in the world though!!

::yay!::

Sunday afternoon in Chinatown

Steph came down for the afternoon and we went for coffee and cake courtesy of the wonderful Starbucks, and then had a wander round chinatown.

Even the (totally boring English streets) have Chinese signposts... which I never knew before!

Resolutions and such

I've not been much of a one for keeping new year's resolutions, but I seem to be on a resolute streak this year, with a variety of things, some very mundane, like stopping biting my nails, some less so, like learning to cook. Honestly last year I couldn't think of anything more time-consuming and annoying than cooking, and my personal rule was that if it takes longer to make than to eat, then it's not worth it. That attitude has mysteriously snapped this year, and I am just suddenly in love with the process, the creativity, and the thought of making other people smile, and I've learned to make a load of stuff - soups, salads, bread, cookies, loadsa things with fish... - haven't made the same meal twice yet this year. It's a really good way to relax as well. One resolution worth making at least!

This just about sums me up (apparently...!)

Your World View

You are a fairly broadminded romantic and reasonably content. You value kindness and try to live by your ideals. You have strong need for security, which may be either emotional or material. You respect truth and are flexible. You like people, and they can readily make friends with you. You are not very adventurous, but this does not bother you.

What Is Your World View?

LOL!!